Owner's Manual - Diamondback Bicycles

have less cornering and braking traction and can lockup with less brake force. Moisture or dirt on the brakepads reduces their ability to grip. The way to maintaincontrol on loose or wet surfaces is to go more slowly tobegin with.D. Shifting GearsYour multi-speed bicycle will have a derailleurdrivetrain (see 2. below), an internal gear hub drivetrain(see 3. below) or, in some special cases, a combinationof the two.1. How A Derailleur Drivetrain WorksIf your bicycle has a derailleur drivetrain, the gearchangingmechanism will have:• a rear cassette or freewheel sprocket cluster• a rear derailleur• usually a front derailleur• one or two shifters• one, two or three front sprockets called chainrings• a drive chaina. Shifting GearsThere are several different types and styles of shiftingcontrols: levers, twist grips, triggers, combination shift/brake controls, push-buttons, and so on. Ask your dealerto explain the type of shifting controls that are on yourbike, and to show you how they work.The vocabulary of shifting can be pretty confusing.A downshift is a shift to a “lower” or “slower” gear, onewhich is easier to pedal. An upshift is a shift to a “higher”23or “faster”, harder to pedal gear. What’s confusing is thatwhat’s happening at the front derailleur is the opposite ofwhat’s happening at the rear derailleur (for details, readthe instructions on Shifting the Rear Derailleur and Shiftingthe Front Derailleur below). For example, you can selecta gear which will make pedaling easier on a hill (make adownshift) in one of two ways: shift the chain down thegear “steps” to a smaller gear at the front, or up the gear“steps” to a larger gear at the rear. So, at the rear gearcluster, what is called a downshift looks like an upshift.The way to keep things straight is to remember thatshifting the chain in towards the centerline of the bike isfor accelerating and climbing and is called a downshift.Moving the chain out or away from the centerline of thebike is for speed and is called an upshift.Whether upshifting or downshifting, the bicyclederailleur system design requires that the drive chain bemoving forward and be under at least some tension. Aderailleur will shift only if you are pedaling forward.! CAUTION: Never move the shifter while pedalingbackward, nor pedal backwards immediately afterhaving moved the shifter. This could jam the chain andcause serious damage to the bicycle.b. Shifting The Rear DerailleurThe rear derailleur is controlled by the right shifter.The function of the rear derailleur is to move thedrive chain from one gear sprocket to another. Thesmaller sprockets on the gear cluster produce highergear ratios. Pedaling in the higher gears requires greaterpedaling effort, but takes you a greater distance witheach revolution of the pedal cranks. The larger sprockets